Paul R. Josephson is Professor Emeritus of History at Colby College. He is a specialist on the history of big science and technology in the twentieth century. The author of fourteen books, he focuses on environmental and political questions, and on the comparative history of Russia and the US. His most recent book, Nuclear Russia: The Atom in Russian Politics and Culture, is a cultural history of the nuclear age in Russia.

Paul R. Josephson is the doyen of the Soviet history of technology and science. His groundbreaking studies have consistently provided powerful inspiration and important landmarks for younger researchers all over the world. In Hero Projects, Josephson proves the significance of profound historical research in coming at an appropriate understanding of Putinism. Moscow's Kremlin bosses are obviously so driven by the imperial demons of the twentieth century that the realities of the twenty-first century remain incomprehensible to them. After reading this book, it's clear that the history of the Soviet Union may be over, but it is far from being overcome.

• Introduction: Hero Projects from Lenin to Putin Chapter 1: Rails and Resources Chapter 2: Mines and Magnates Illustrations Part I Chapter 3: Water and Empire Chapter 4: Nuclear Wonderlands Illustrations Part II Chapter 5: Bridges of Empire: Putin's Failed Crimean Bridge Chapter 6: Nostalgic Engineering: Big Technology and Russia in the Twenty-first Century Epilogue: Hero Projects as Nostalgia for the Future Acknowledgements Note on Sources Notes Index

Paul R. Josephson is Professor Emeritus of History at Colby College. He is a specialist on the history of big science and technology in the twentieth century. The author of fourteen books, he focuses on environmental and political questions, and on the comparative history of Russia and the US. His most recent book, Nuclear Russia: The Atom in Russian Politics and Culture, is a cultural history of the nuclear age in Russia.

Paul R. Josephson is the doyen of the Soviet history of technology and science. His groundbreaking studies have consistently provided powerful inspiration and important landmarks for younger researchers all over the world. In Hero Projects, Josephson proves the significance of profound historical research in coming at an appropriate understanding of Putinism. Moscow's Kremlin bosses are obviously so driven by the imperial demons of the twentieth century that the realities of the twenty-first century remain incomprehensible to them. After reading this book, it's clear that the history of the Soviet Union may be over, but it is far from being overcome.

• Introduction: Hero Projects from Lenin to Putin Chapter 1: Rails and Resources Chapter 2: Mines and Magnates Illustrations Part I Chapter 3: Water and Empire Chapter 4: Nuclear Wonderlands Illustrations Part II Chapter 5: Bridges of Empire: Putin's Failed Crimean Bridge Chapter 6: Nostalgic Engineering: Big Technology and Russia in the Twenty-first Century Epilogue: Hero Projects as Nostalgia for the Future Acknowledgements Note on Sources Notes Index

Paul R. Josephson is Professor Emeritus of History at Colby College. He is a specialist on the history of big science and technology in the twentieth century. The author of fourteen books, he focuses on environmental and political questions, and on the comparative history of Russia and the US. His most recent book, Nuclear Russia: The Atom in Russian Politics and Culture, is a cultural history of the nuclear age in Russia.

Paul R. Josephson is the doyen of the Soviet history of technology and science. His groundbreaking studies have consistently provided powerful inspiration and important landmarks for younger researchers all over the world. In Hero Projects, Josephson proves the significance of profound historical research in coming at an appropriate understanding of Putinism. Moscow's Kremlin bosses are obviously so driven by the imperial demons of the twentieth century that the realities of the twenty-first century remain incomprehensible to them. After reading this book, it's clear that the history of the Soviet Union may be over, but it is far from being overcome.

• Introduction: Hero Projects from Lenin to Putin Chapter 1: Rails and Resources Chapter 2: Mines and Magnates Illustrations Part I Chapter 3: Water and Empire Chapter 4: Nuclear Wonderlands Illustrations Part II Chapter 5: Bridges of Empire: Putin's Failed Crimean Bridge Chapter 6: Nostalgic Engineering: Big Technology and Russia in the Twenty-first Century Epilogue: Hero Projects as Nostalgia for the Future Acknowledgements Note on Sources Notes Index